Using Technology?!

This summer has been quite different for me. Not only have I been living in the Midwest, much different than my beloved Northern California, but I’ve been pushing myself to become a little more tech savvy. I’m not saying I’ve grown in leaps and bounds, like I hope my students do each school year, but I am feeling a little more comfortable with some new tech tools. The book Amplify by Katie Muhtaris and Kristin Ziemke has helped push me on this journey to grow as an educator. Sitting down reading this book, with my laptop by my side has been incredibly helpful, even with Mother Nature’s distractions… the pounding of incredible thunder and flashes of lightening that light up any sky! It can be challenging to find the time during the school year to sit, read, and grow, so this gift of time has been a blessing. Katie and Kristin have reminded me of unused tools from my past, and have created chaos inside my brain as I learn about new terms, tools, and apps. I’ve participated in webinars at their suggestion, and have looked at Social Media through a different lens. And the additional Teacher Blogs… Well I have so many new favorites that I could choose to retire and just read blogs for the rest of my life… 24/7! Here are a couple of new favorites:

Innovate Ignite Inspire:

by Katie Muhtaris helps keep remind me of how to use the best of technology with what I actually have access to, and doesn’t make me feel inadequate.

Nerdy Book Club:

Now here is a group of educators that I want to hang out with daily!! If you want to learn about any new book published, read incredible reviews, or chat about books, here is a new haven for you.

I head back to sunny CA this weekend and a bed I’ve not slept in for the past 5 weeks. I leave a piece of my heart in the nearby cornfields and the house that has become my home.